2025 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 2: Hollywood Brown, Michael Penix Jr. Top Picks

I’ll be honest with you folks - there isn’t a name that jumps out to us on the fantasy football waiver wire this week. If I’m in a league that has weekly priority and I’m the top priority, I’m likely not using it unless that player is going directly into my lineup. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t some gems out there on the 2025 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 2 that we are willing to sprinkle some FAAB on - or scoop up after waivers run.

So here are the best waiver wire picks for this week. Also included at the bottom is an updated version of our Yin & Yang Tight End rankings, which are our custom rankings for rest-of-season tight end. With the injuries to George Kittle and Evan Engram, that could come in handy this week.

2025 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 2 Top Targets

As always, our 2025 Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Week 2 discussion will be split into two articles. This is the main article, which covers the top players to add and best waiver wire picks at each position, as well as an update to our Yin & Yang Tight End strategy. The second article, soon found here, is our Streamers and Stashes article that covers the deeper, more nuanced plays for Fantasy Alarm Members!

NFL Week 2 Waiver Wire Quarterbacks

Daniel Jones - Indianapolis Colts

Yahoo: 5% | ESPN: 5% | Sleeper: 10%

We talked about Daniel Jones in our waiver wire article last week. And he pretty much delivered on exactly what we had hoped. The Colts have tremendous weapons. And Jones himself is a mobile quarterback. He threw the ball well all day and scored two rushing touchdowns as the cherry on top.

Folks will try to dismiss this as playing a bad Dolphins team. But we have to allow for the possibility that Jones was simply in a bad environment in New York. Evan Engram left and had the second-most receptions a tight end has ever had. Saquon Barkley left and set the world on fire. They basically had to change the rules to clarify the guy has to come back from an injury because quarterbacks the left the city of New York kept winning NFL Comeback Player of the Year. Jones landed in a fully loaded offense, and we’ve seen him run for 700 yards and 7 TDs before. I'm taking a shot.

Waiver Priority: Late or Free Add (more if you start him right away)

FAAB: 0-5%

Michael Penix - Atlanta Falcons

Yahoo: 35% | ESPN: 20% | Sleeper: 35%

Speaking of quarterbacks playing with great weapons, Michael Penix Jr did a pretty decent job of delivering the ball this week to Drake London, Bijan Robinson, and Kyle Pitts. And that was without Darnell Mooney, who is working his way back from a shoulder injury. We’re not really banking on the rushing heroics from him, but Bijan Robinson did warn us that people might be sleeping on the athleticism of Michael Penix.

On top of that, Penix definitely has some portions of this schedule where he could do some damage. The second half of the season, especially, has a number of games vs either bad teams or potential shootouts - especially in the fantasy playoffs when they face Tampa Bay again, Arizona, and the Los Angeles Rams. Penix is a guy who could be exciting in 2025. We had this guy at the top of our Stashes list in the premium article for a reason.

Waiver Priority: Low or Free Add

FAAB: 0-5% (more if he starts for you)

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Running Backs

Trey Benson - Arizona Cardinals

Yahoo: 39% | ESPN: 51% | Sleeper: 54%

Trey Benson was our top add last week. And we are certainly holding him after his performance in Week One. He not only got a little boost in usage vs. last year, as we had hoped, but he displayed improved patience - especially on his 52-yard run. That’s something he mentioned this offseason as a point of emphasis after saying that he got “too excited” on occasion last year and did not wait for plays to develop.

The idea here is simple. If Trey Benson can get 8-10 touches a week, he can have some standalone value. But he’s also the handcuff to a 30-year-old back who has missed at least one game with injury in each of his 8 seasons. This is a priority bench play for us.

Waiver Priority: Late or Free Add

FAAB: 0-5%

Dylan Sampson - Cleveland Browns

Yahoo: 47% | ESPN: 33% | Sleeper: 52%

If you absolutely need someone to slot into your starting lineup, you might want to look to Dylan Sampson. He led the Browns' backfield in rushing this week and got 28 of 19 early down carries. He did, however, cede third down, two-minute drill, and goal-line work to the veteran Jerome Ford.

Even more concerning is Quinshon Judkins looming in the background. He was cleared of accusations and signed with the team on Saturday. He’s going to need to learn the plays, but as the more highly touted prospect, he could easily take over this backfield as the season progresses. That makes Sampson closer to streamer territory than it does to a long-term solution.

Waiver Priority: Late or Free Add

FAAB: 0-5% (more if he starts for you)

Kenneth Gainwell - Pittsburgh Steelers

Yahoo: 1% | ESPN: 2% | Sleeper: 4%

If you had been paying attention this offseason, you might have noticed a change of roles in the Steelers' backfield. In each preseason game the starters played, Jaylen Warren started but he didn’t take any of the third-down work - Kenneth Gainwell did. And that’s what we saw again on Sunday with Jaylen Warren in the Najee Harris role and Kenneth Gainwell in the role Jaylen Warren used to play.

Gainwell got all eight snaps on third down and the one running back snap on third down. As we learned from Warren last year, this role can produce some fantasy results, especially in PPR formats. If you are in a deep league, Gainwell could at least be a bye-week fill-in.

Waiver Priority: Late or Free Add

FAAB: 0%

Honorable Mention or Deep League Options: Tyjae Spears (IR spot), Jaylen Wright (IR spot), DJ Giddens

NFL Week 2 Waiver Wire Wide Receivers

Kayshon Boutte - New England Patriots

Yahoo: 2% | ESPN: 1% | Sleeper: 4%

It’s fairly rare to find a starting wide receiver on the waiver wire. And, without injury, it’s even more rare for that player to be a full-time guy. In this case, we have a wide receiver who led his team in snaps, routes, targets, receptions, and yards. That’s something we have to acknowledge here.

Now, Stefon Diggs is not fully ramped up coming off the ACL injury. But there’s a real chance that Boutte holds onto his role on the outside opposite Diggs - one he has had going back to last year. This team likes using both Hunter Henry and Austin Hooper, but the smaller Demario Douglas could be the one who takes the hit if Diggs needs more snaps. There are a few teams with uncertainty out there in the pecking order, and New England is one, so we have to make moves while these guys are out there. Of the waiver WR options this week, he has the best combination of short-term and long-term upside.

Waiver Priority: Late or Free Add

FAAB: 0-5%

Hollywood Brown - Kansas City Chiefs

Yahoo: 26% | ESPN: 50% | Sleeper: 31%

If you need someone to go right into your lineup for Week 2 - and possibly the next five weeks - Marquise “Hollywood” Brown should be your priority. That’s why he was in this article last week as well. We don’t know how many games Xavier Worthy is set to miss with his shoulder issue. But we do know Rashee Rice is set to miss 6 with his suspension. Five more games are a huge chunk of the fantasy season.

This guy just got 16 targets and caught 10 of them. He wasn’t super efficient, and he did have a bad drop, but volume is king in this league. The Chiefs love their WR screens, and Brown just got two of them this past week. His floor is very high for the short term.

Waiver Priority: Late or Free Add

FAAB: 0-5% (more if he goes directly into your lineup)

Wan’Dale Robinson - New York Giants

Yahoo: 20% | ESPN: 31% | Sleeper: 23%

Another player we mentioned in last week’s article has to be mentioned here again. I don’t care if he is a “PPR scam”, I will take fantasy points however we can get them. Many folks were saying that he did not “deserve” his 140 targets last year and that he wouldn’t get them again this year. Well, he got 8 in Week 1, which is a 136 target pace. And he caught six of those targets - in PPR leagues, I don’t care if you have 6 catches for 6 yards, I will take it. In this case, he had 55, which is double-digit fantasy points.

The concern is that they could change the quarterback at some points, possibly in the near future. But that’s also a concern for our next guy, and the target pecking order seems a lot more clear in New York. Maybe the offense will be even better, and he can find the endzone, who knows?

Waiver Priority: Late or Free Add

FAAB: 0%

Cedric Tillman - Cleveland Browns

Yahoo: 28% | ESPN: 43% | Sleeper: 34%

In Week 1, Jerry Jeudy played 67 snaps, ran 46 routes, and got 8 targets. Cedric Tillman also played 67 snaps, ran 46 routes, and got 8 targets. No other WR ran more than 14 routes as they focused on two tight end sets. That can help to consolidate targets.

We don’t know for sure how this target pecking order will shake out, but the one thing we do know is that Joe Flacco loves to run a high-tempo, high-volume offense. That’s been true going back to his days with the Colts, Browns, and Jets. So Tillman could be a guy who goes right into lineups for you in deeper formats. The waiver wire does not have a lot of guys running 96% of the routes.

Waiver Priority: Late or Free Add

FAAB: 0-5%

Honorable Mention or Deep League Options: Brandon Aiyuk (move to IR spot), Christian Kirk, Quentin Johnston, Joshua Palmer, Romeo Doubs, Troy Franklin

Fantasy Football Waiver Wire Tight Ends

Juwan Johnson - New Orleans Saints

Yahoo: 3% | ESPN: 1% | Sleeper: 5%

Some folks are going to be amped up by Harold Fannin, and he was certainly impressive. But the conditions for Juwan Johnson are actually slightly better, and, based on the key metrics we focus on, Juwan Johnson is the priority add for us. I know one game is a super small sample size, but the metrics for Johnson were virtually perfect.

95.9% route participation (TE2)

23.9% target share (TE4)

1.9% pass block rate (tied for TE2 after players with 0%)

8.2 yard aDot (top 10)

1.62 YPRR (top 10)

71.1% WR snap percentage (top 10)

Those metrics are largely why he led all tight ends in targets and receptions while finishing top five in yards. Yes, he has target competition from Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed, but it could be worse. Our only real concern is that he could lose some of that snap and route participation when Foster Moreau and/or Taysom Hill get back. But he’s a converted WR, so he offers a different skillset than those guys. Go get him if you need him - especially if you lost George Kittle or Evan Engram.

Waiver Priority: Medium to Low Priority

FAAB: 5-10% (more if he goes directly into your lineup)

Harold Fannin Jr - Cleveland Browns

Yahoo: 3% | ESPN: 1% | Sleeper: 6%

Fannin Jr has the upside of being a rookie - we might only be seeing the very beginning of what he could become. His target share and yards per route run this week were also top 10 for tight ends. And he caught 7 of 9 targets, which is going to flash in the box score every time.

There are a couple of parts of his profile that are less than ideal, however. He only had a 64.6% route participation. He ran fewer routes than Jerry Jeudy, Cedric Tillman, and David Njoku. When the team drops back to pass 48 times, as 64.6% route participation is fine, but if they were to drop back closer to the league average of 35-40 times, now that’s 22-25 routes run. Every game the Browns lose brings them closer to rolling out rookie QBs like Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders, which is going to hurt these pass-catchers. Thanks to their kicker, they are now 0-1.

Harold Fannin could turn out to be awesome and we want to give ourselves a shot at that. But sometimes teams just come out and do something the opponent wasn't expecting which catches them completely off-guard. We saw it last year in Week 1 when Isaiah Likely surprises the Chiefs. Njoku played more snaps and ran more routes so I wouldn't necessarily be shocked in Njoku outscored Fannin next week. That and those other concerns has me ranking him as the 2nd option behind Johnson.

Waiver Priority: Late or free add

FAAB: 0-5% (more if he goes directly into your lineup)

**Check the bottom of the article for free rest of season half PPR tight end rankings with our Yin & Yang tight end chart!**

NFL Week 2 Waiver Wire D/ST

Seattle Seahawks DST

Yahoo: 22% | ESPN: 76% | Sleeper: 24%

Seattle actually did a good job getting after the quarterback this weekend and generated two interceptions. Aaron Rodgers might have thrown four touchdown passes this week, but he also had no interest in evading pass-rushers in the pocket and let up four fairly easy sacks. After this, Seattle gets the Saints and then the Cardinals, where Kyler Murray also has a history of giving up sacks. So they could be decent for a couple of weeks.

New England Patriots DST

Yahoo: 14% | ESPN: 70% | Sleeper: 26%

This one is really contingent on getting Christian Gonzalez back this week. If he’s not back then it’s a much less appealing play, but their schedule is good for the next few weeks at least, until they face Buffalo. After that game, their schedule actually gets pretty good again, and they don’t have their bye until Week 14 if you just like to hold your nose and start one DST while focusing on other positions.

Honorable Mention or Deep League Options: San Francisco 49ers vs. NO, Los Angeles Rams vs. TEN, Dallas vs. NYG

Fantasy Football Week 2 Waiver Wire Kickers

Tyler Loop - Baltimore Ravens

Yahoo: 39% | ESPN: 57% | Sleeper: 61%

Sometimes we just want the kickers for good teams. Tyler Loop has earned the gif and, despite missing the extra point that ended up costing them the game, he made some deep field goals of 49 and 52 yards. He should be scoring points against the Browns before more potential shootouts against the Lions and Chiefs. We like shootouts.

Matt Prater - Buffalo Bills

Yahoo: 2% | ESPN: 12% | Sleeper: 4%

Same thought process here, really. We want the kickers for the good teams, and the Bills are going to be without Tyler Bass for at least three more games. After those three games, the bye weeks start, so folks are going to be shuffling around kickers either way. Might as well grab the Bills kicker against the Jets, Dolphins, and Saints.

NFL Yin & Yang Tight End Rankings

As promised, here are our Yin & Yang tight end rankings. This has been our bread and butter the last few years, and how we find breakout tight ends. Here is how the chart works.

If you have someone in the “standalone” section, then great - you don’t need to roster another tight end outside of injury and bye week. Outside of that, we are rostering two. We are looking for someone “safe” to start while stashing the highest risk, high-reward option, trying to find a breakout.

The tight ends in red are injured and at risk of missing time. If you can put them in an IR spot, great. If not, you may have to prioritize either a Yin or a Yang tight end ranked above them to start for you.

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